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    'Billions' Star Asia Kate Dillon Wants SAG Awards to Erase Gender-Specific Categories

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    The first non-binary performer on television has submitted an open letter that urges SAG leaders to make the prize-giving more inclusive towards artists who do not identify as either male or female.
    Jun 11, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Asia Kate Dillon, primetime U.S. TV’s first non-binary performer, has asked Screen Actors Guild Awards bosses to do away with gender-specific prizes.
    The “Billions” star, was invited by committee members to join a judging panel for a string of categories ahead of next year’s prizegiving, including Female Actor in a Leading Role and Male Actor in a Leading Role, and responding to the offer on Wednesday, June 10, Dillon submitted an open letter to SAG leaders urging them to make the awards bash more inclusive towards artists who do not identify as either male or female.
    The star’s plea reads in part, “Separating people based on their assigned sex, and/or their gender identity, is not only irrelevant when it comes to how an acting performance should be judged, it is also a form of discrimination.”
    “Not only do your current categories erase non-binary identities by limiting performers to identifying as male or female/man or womxn (sic) (which not all SAG members, like myself, do), they also serve as an endorsement of the gender binary at large, which actively upholds other forms of discrimination, including racism, the patriarchy, and gender violence.”
    “The distinction between male and female acting categories was implemented as a means of combating the chronic and systemic overlooking of cis-women (born female), particularly white cis-women, when it came to acting awards. This was despite the fact that there were no other categories similarly revised (as in directoress, best female or best male director/cinematographer/sound designer, etc.)”
    The 35-year-old, who was nominated for the Critics Choice Awards in 2018, 2019 and 2020, concluded the note by stating, “I would be thrilled to serve as a judge, provided you take immediate action to combine your acting awards into gender-neutral categories. This courageous and overdue step from my union would send a wide message that SAG not only supports me but supports all its non-binary and gender non-conforming members.”
    The awards chiefs have yet to respond to Dillon’s missive.

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    Ice-T Applauds Fair Depiction of African-Americans in 'Law and Order: SVU'

    NBC/David Giesbrecht

    When promoting the release of upcoming movie ‘Equal Standard’, the actor known as Detective Odafin Tutuola on the police-procedural drama shares his thoughts on why the Dick Wolf series was so successful.
    Jun 11, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Ice-T has praised the long-running show “Law & Order” for always trying to be “fair” in its depiction of African-Americans.
    In a promotional interview ahead of the release of his new movie “Equal Standard”, he shared his thoughts about why the Dick Wolf show was so successful, telling editors at Page Six he suggested it’s because “it’s tried to be as fair as it can possibly be.”
    “You have got the black gang bangers, but you have also got the black judge, you’ve got the black attorney,” said the hip-hop star who’s starred as Detective Odafin Tutuola on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” for more than 20 seasons.
    But he also acknowledged the police officers on the show, which stars Mariska Hargitay, have been somewhat “romanticized.”
    “I am wearing Gucci. Mariska is wearing designer clothes,” he continued. “Cops can’t afford to do that, so in a way we romanticize that job when it’s not that romantic.”
    In “Equal Standard”, Ice-T stars alongside “Naughty by Nature” rapper Anthony ‘Treach’ Criss in the film about racism in the police force, and the often tense relationship between African-American men and law enforcement.

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    'Fleabag', 'Chernobyl' and 'Succession' Named Winners of 2020 Peabody Awards

    Amazon Studios/HBO

    ‘Surviving R. Kelly’, in the meantime, picks up a documentary honor from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication panel, and ‘Dolly Parton’s America’ secures podcast nod.
    Jun 11, 2020
    AceShowbiz – “Fleabag”, “Chernobyl” and “Succession” have been named among the 30 most compelling and empowering TV series to pick up 2020 Peabody Awards.
    “Dickinson”, “David Makes Man”, “The Simpsons”, “When They See Us”, “Ramy”, “Watchmen” and “Stranger Things” have also been honored by the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication panel at the University of Georgia, while the documentaries singled out for Peabody applause include “Apollo 11”, “For Sama”, “Surviving R. Kelly” and “The Edge of Democracy”.
    “Dolly Parton’s America” picked up a podcast nod, alongside “Have You Heard George’s Podcast?” and “Threshold: The Refuge”.

    It was previously announced Cicely Tyson had been honored with the 2020 Peabody Lifetime Career Achievement Award.

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    Wendy Williams Gives Fans Update on Her Show While Flaunting New Hair Makeover

    Instagram

    Looking stunning in a pink and green dress, the 55-year-old talk show host says, ‘I’m in my house, but what I want the most is to be with you, I miss you, I miss you a lot.’
    Jun 11, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Wendy Williams hinted that she’s doing good after sparking concerns amid suicidal rumors. On Wednesday, June 10, the talk show host took to her Instagram account to share a video of her looking gorgeous while flaunting a new hair makeover.
    In the clip, Wendy greeted her fans from home in addition to giving them update on her show “The Wendy Williams Show” in the midst of coronavirus pandemic. “Hello! Hi, it’s me from home and hopefully for not too long,” she said to the camera.
    “You know what I’m waiting for? I’m waiting for the state of New York to say that we as a show can go back,” Wendy, who looked stunning in a pink and green dress, went on to say. “Now we got 200 people in our audience, we will never have that again but I want to go back to do our show, nothing makes me happier than being Wendy on the ‘Wendy show’! I got the love and the boyfriends and all that other kind of stuff, I’m in my house, but what I want the most is to be with you, I miss you, I miss you a lot.”
    She also admitted that she felt confident about her appearance on that day. “I couldn’t wait to wear this dress, I’m going to wear it again on the show so don’t act like you never saw it,” she joked. “It’s pink and it’s green and it’s beautiful and I love it but I love you more.”

    The post arrives after it was rumored that Wendy was treated on the neurology floor at New York Presbyterian hospital for trying to kill herself. She allegedly refused to eat and drink.
    Rumor has it, her husband’s infidelities and their subsequent divorce coupled with her alleged row with her only son took a toll on her mental health. She reportedly broke down during the quarantine after her son was turned against her by her ex-husband.
    She hasn’t responded to the suicide rumors, but she has been taking a break since May 18. She cited her struggle with Graves’ disease as the reason behind her hiatus from her TV show. Besides having Graves’ disease, Wendy has been struggling with cocaine addiction. She described herself as “a functioning addict” and stayed at a sober living house with a 24-hour coach in 2019 amid her marital woes.

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    Lisa Vanderpump Condemns Racism After 'Vanderpump Rules' Firings, Andy Cohen Supports Decision

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    Stassi Schroeder and Kristen Doute, along with two other cast members, have been let go by Bravo days after former castmate Faith Stowers accused them of racial profiling her.
    Jun 11, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Lisa Vanderpump has finally addressed the racism drama surrounding the cast members of “Vanderpump Rules”. One day after Bravo announced the firing of Stassi Schroeder, Kristen Doute, Max Boyens and Brett Caprioni, the restaurateur issued a statement condemning racism and unequal treatment among others.
    Making use of Instagram on Wednesday, June 10, the 59-year-old first explained that it was necessary for her to stay quiet until decisions had been made on the issues. Claiming that she now “can freely speak from the heart,” she then stated,” I love and adore our employees and I am deeply saddened by some of the lack of judgment that has been displayed.”
    The former star of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” further insisted that she has “always been an equal rights activist and ally,” before declaring, “I condemn all forms of cruelty, racism, homophobia, bigotry and unequal treatment. We’ve never tolerated it in the workplace or our lives.” She added that viewers “only see a fraction of our employees on the show.”
    “I am proud of the inclusive company that we’ve created,” the wife of Ken Todd went on to share. “We will continue to embrace diversity as one of our greatest strengths, and I’m excited to give you deeper look into the multi-faceted fabric of our company in the future.”
    Expressing hope that this generation will “treat each other with respect and humanity, and realize that actions have; and should have, consequences,” the mother of two continued, “Everybody deserves to feel safe, heard and appreciated in their communities.” She concluded by stating, “We all have work to do to create a society we can be proud of and I hope as we venture forward, we strive to live in a world where kindness and compassion are our highest values.”

    Also sharing his two cents on the drama was “Real Housewives” executive producer Andy Cohen. During the Wednesday episode of SiriusXM’s Radio Andy, the Bravo host made it clear that he wholly agreed with the firings. “I absolutely support Bravo’s decision, I think it was the right decision,” he stated.
    Though so, the “Watch What Happens Live” host reminded people, who sent him messages about “Pump Rules”, “Southern Charm” and other shows, that he is “not in charge of programming at Bravo anymore.” He added, “I don’t produce the show, so what I want people to know is that I have no say in hiring and firing.”
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    The firing of the four “Pump Rules” stars came after former castmate Faith Stowers spoke out against Schoeder and Doute. In a chat with “Floribama Shore” star Candace Rice, Stowers claimed that the pair reported her to the police for a crime she did not do just because she was a black woman. Both Schoeder and Doute have since issued an apology for their action.

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    'AGT' Recap: Heidi Klum Hits Her Golden Buzzer for This Amazing Singer

    NBC

    Opening the new episode of the NBC talent competition show is acrobat Emerald Gordon Wulf who shows off her flexibility, prompting judge Heidi Klum to rave about him.
    Jun 10, 2020
    AceShowbiz – “America’s Got Talent” returned with a new episode on Tuesday, June 9. The new episode featured contestants hitting the stage for the third round of season 15. Opening the outing was acrobat Emerald Gordon Wulf who showed off her flexibility, much to the judges’ liking. “What an amazing gift you have,” said Heidi Klum, while Simon Cowell asked her to show something that “AGT” audience had never seen before.
    Following it up was musical trio Resound, who performed “What the World Needs Now”. It was such an amazing performance, enough to earn them a standing ovation from Simon. Meanwhile, Sofia Vergara said that their performance made her want to get married again so they could sing and walk her down the aisle.
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    Dancer Amanda LaCount then flaunted her skills. While Sofia, Simon and Howie Mandel gave her a standing ovation, Heidi hit her buzzer. Simon loved her performance, saying, “For me, I loved every moment of the audition.” With two yes from Simon and Sofia, Amanda got to move to the next round.
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    Later, it was a stunning performance from Kazakhstan singer Daneliya Tuleshova, who belted out Camila Cabello’s “Cry for Me”. Sofia dubbed it both “breathtaking” and “surprising,” while Simon raved that it was Daneliya’s “incredible first audition.” Unsurprisingly, Daneliya was moving on. Also joining others in the next round was comedian Marty Ross.
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    Celina wowed everyone with a performance of “Mercy” by Shawn Mendes and was sent to the next round. Magic act The Demented Brothers also moved to the next round. Earning 4 yes were Shakir and Rehan Kahn, dancers from India. “I thought it was spectacular,” Sofia mentioned.
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    Concluding the night was singer Cristina Rae who offered a performance of “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins. Everyone was on their feet at the end of her performance. Simon even asked her to sing another song and she performed The Rolling Stones’ hit “Gimme Shelter”. Heidi loved it so much that she gave Cristina her Golden Buzzer!

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    Unexpected Death on 'Ozark' Season 3 Finale Shocks Janet McTeer's Co-Stars

    Netflix

    During a recent SAG Foundation Conversations panel, the actress portraying Helen Pierce admits while she knew the shot-to-death scene since the beginning, she still found it difficult.
    Jun 10, 2020
    AceShowbiz – The death of Janet McTeer’s character in the latest season of Netflix hit “Ozark” was so unexpected even her castmates didn’t see it coming.
    McTeer’s ambitious, scheming lawyer, Helen Pierce, was shot in the head in the season three finale, which debuted on the streaming service at the end of March, stunning fans of the drug drama.
    And the actress’ co-stars admit they too were shocked when they first realized McTeer wouldn’t be joining them for season four.
    Julia Garner says, “I remember reading that scene. I had to read it three times because I couldn’t believe it! Wait, what?”
    McTeer admits getting ready to be shot in the head at close range was difficult. “I knew it was gonna happen from the moment I signed my contract,” she said during a recent SAG Foundation Conversations panel. “When we came to do it I think we rehearsed it, like, 50 times over multiple days because if you could imagine the reset in between all of that would’ve taken a very long time. All the things that you have to take off and put on again.”
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    “The actual bit we shot once. The thing that’s really fun to do in a scene like that is to be a red herring, so you think you’ve got the chance to say something else or my expectation of the scene is to be happy, so you mislead the audience into thinking something else might happen. So I tried to look as relaxed, slightly arrogant and slightly, ‘I know what I’m going to say next’, and then ‘boom.’ ”

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